JPWO2018037900A1 - DRIVING SUPPORT DEVICE AND METHOD, MOBILE OBJECT, AND PROGRAM - Google Patents

Abstract

The present technology relates to a driving support device and method, a moving object, and a program that enable appropriate driving support to be provided. The driving support device includes a control unit that performs driving support processing of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle. The present technology can be applied to mobile bodies such as automobiles.

Description

  The present technology relates to a driving support device and method, a moving body, and a program, and more particularly, to a driving support device and method, a moving body, and a program that can perform appropriate driving support.

  BACKGROUND Conventionally, a driving support function that supports driving of a vehicle such as a passenger car is known.

  For example, occurrence of a collision accident or the like can be prevented by performing driving support such as control of an inter-vehicle distance or the like to avoid a collision between the own vehicle and another vehicle traveling around it.

  In addition, an inter-vehicle communication technology has also been proposed in which information about vehicles around the host vehicle is acquired by performing communication between the vehicles (for example, see Patent Document 1). Since information on surrounding vehicles is also required to provide appropriate driving assistance, it is useful to obtain information on surrounding vehicles through such inter-vehicle communication.

JP 2007-62475 A

  By the way, although the state of the own vehicle and surrounding vehicles greatly influences the occurrence of a collision accident etc., the information required for the driving support differs depending on the situation. However, in the above-described technology, it is difficult to selectively acquire necessary information and appropriately provide driving assistance.

  The present technology has been made in view of such a situation, and enables appropriate driving support to be provided.

  The driving assistance apparatus according to the first aspect of the present technology includes a control unit that performs driving assistance processing of the subject vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information regarding surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the subject vehicle.

  The area may be set to be wider as the number of occupants of the host vehicle is larger.

  The driving support processing may be processing for avoiding a collision between the own vehicle and the surrounding vehicle.

  The surrounding vehicle information includes information indicating a traveling state of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating the number of occupants of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating a type of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating a driving mode of the surrounding vehicle, and The information may include at least one of the information indicating the driver's attributes.

  The control unit may determine the area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle.

  The control unit may determine the area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle and the riding position of the occupant in the host vehicle or the attribute of the occupant.

  Among the surrounding vehicle information received from the surrounding vehicle in a predetermined area wider than the area, the control unit may control the surrounding vehicle in the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle. The driving support processing can be performed based on the surrounding vehicle information.

  When the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle is wider than the predetermined area after acquiring the peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicle within the predetermined area in the control unit The peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicle in the determined area may be further acquired.

  Among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle, the control unit, for each distance to the surrounding vehicle or for each lane in which the surrounding vehicle travels, based on the number of occupants of the own vehicle It is possible to select the type of information used for the driving support process of

  The control unit may further control presentation of information on the area.

  The driving support method or program according to the first aspect of the present technology includes the step of performing a driving support process of the subject vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on nearby vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the subject vehicle.

  In the first aspect of the present technology, the driving support process of the own vehicle is performed based on the surrounding vehicle information regarding the surrounding vehicles present in the area corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.

  The mobile unit according to the second aspect of the present technology includes a control unit that performs driving support processing of the subject vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on nearby vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the subject vehicle.

  In the second aspect of the present technology, the driving support process of the own vehicle is performed based on the surrounding vehicle information regarding the surrounding vehicles present in the area corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.

  According to the first and second aspects of the present technology, it is possible to perform appropriate driving support.

  In addition, the effect described here is not necessarily limited, and may be any effect described in the present disclosure.

It is a figure showing an example of composition of vehicles. It is a figure explaining the block connected to the bus | bath for CAN communication. It is a figure explaining an around view monitor function. It is a figure explaining the other example of the block connected to the bus | bath for CAN communication. It is a figure showing an example of functional composition of vehicles. It is a figure explaining surrounding vehicle information. It is a flow chart explaining operation control processing. It is a figure explaining the example of a display of a receiving field. It is a figure explaining the example of a display of a receiving field. It is a figure explaining the example of a display of a receiving field. It is a figure explaining the determination method of a receiving area. It is a figure explaining the determination method of a receiving area. It is a figure explaining the determination method of a receiving area. It is a flow chart explaining operation control processing. It is a flow chart explaining operation control processing. It is a flow chart explaining operation control processing. It is a flow chart explaining operation control processing. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a computer.

  Hereinafter, embodiments to which the present technology is applied will be described with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment
<Example of vehicle configuration>
The present technology receives surrounding vehicle information from a surrounding vehicle in a region (range) according to the number of occupants of the own vehicle, and driving for avoiding a collision between the own vehicle and the surrounding vehicle based on the received nearby vehicle information. By performing the support process, it is possible to realize appropriate driving support.

  In addition, although driving assistance here means driving control performed at the time of driving of the vehicle in arbitrary driving modes, such as assisted driving and autonomous driving, in the following, when the vehicle to which the present technology is applied is performing assisted driving. The description will be continued by taking the case where the driving support processing is executed as an example. In addition, although the case where the present technology is applied to a passenger car (car) will be described as an example below, the present technology may be a car such as an electric car or a hybrid electric car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, an electric wheelchair, personal mobility, It is applicable to mobile bodies such as airplanes, ships, robots and the like.

  Hereinafter, more specific embodiments will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an embodiment of a vehicle to which the present technology is applied.

  A vehicle 11 shown in FIG. 1 includes a front sensing camera 21, a front camera ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 22, a position information acquisition unit 23, a display unit 24, a communication unit 25, a steering mechanism 26, a radar 27, a rider 28, a side view camera 29, side view camera ECU 30, integrated ECU 31, front view camera 32, front view camera ECU 33, braking device 34, engine 35, generator 36, drive motor 37, battery 38, rear view camera 39, rear view camera ECU 40, vehicle speed detection unit 41 and a headlight 42.

  The units provided in the vehicle 11 are mutually connected by a bus for CAN (Controller Area Network) communication and other connection lines, but in order to make the figure easy to view here, those buses and connection lines It is drawn without distinction in particular.

  The front sensing camera 21 is, for example, a camera dedicated to sensing disposed in the vicinity of a rearview mirror in a vehicle compartment, captures an image of the front of the vehicle 11 as a subject, and outputs a sensing image obtained as a result to the front camera ECU 22.

  The front camera ECU 22 appropriately performs processing for improving the image quality, etc. on the sensing image supplied from the front sensing camera 21, and then performs image recognition on the sensing image to obtain white lines, pedestrians, etc. from the sensing image. Detect any object of The front camera ECU 22 outputs the result of image recognition to a bus for CAN communication.

  The position information acquisition unit 23 includes, for example, a position information measurement system such as a GPS (Global Positioning System), detects the position of the vehicle 11, and outputs position information indicating the detection result to a CAN communication bus.

  The display unit 24 includes, for example, a liquid crystal display panel, and is disposed at a predetermined position in the vehicle interior, such as the center portion of the instrument panel and the interior of the rearview mirror. Further, the display unit 24 may be a transmissive display provided so as to be superimposed on a windshield (front glass) portion, or may be a display of a car navigation system. The display unit 24 displays various images in accordance with the control of the integrated ECU 31.

  The communication unit 25 performs information communication with surrounding vehicles, portable terminal devices carried by pedestrians, roadside machines, and external servers by various wireless communications such as inter-vehicle communication, inter-walk communication, and road-to-vehicle communication. Send and receive For example, the communication unit 25 performs inter-vehicle communication with a surrounding vehicle, receives surrounding vehicle information including information indicating the number of occupants and traveling conditions from the surrounding vehicle, and supplies the information to the integrated ECU 31.

  The steering mechanism 26 performs control of the traveling direction of the vehicle 11, that is, steering angle control, in accordance with steering wheel operation by the driver or a control signal supplied from the integrated ECU 31. The radar 27 is a distance measurement sensor that measures the distance to an object such as a vehicle or a pedestrian in each direction such as forward or backward using an electromagnetic wave such as a millimeter wave, and integrates measurement results of the distance to the object It outputs to ECU31 grade. The lidar 28 is a distance measuring sensor that measures the distance to an object such as a vehicle or a pedestrian in each direction such as forward or backward using a light wave, and outputs the measurement result of the distance to the object to the integrated ECU 31 etc. Do.

  The side view camera 29 is, for example, a camera disposed in the housing of the side mirror or in the vicinity of the side mirror, and an image of the side of the vehicle 11 (hereinafter also referred to as a side image) The image is taken and supplied to the side view camera ECU 30.

  The side view camera ECU 30 performs image processing for improving the image quality such as white balance adjustment on the side image supplied from the side view camera 29, and the obtained side image is used as a CAN communication bus It supplies to integrated ECU31 via a different cable.

  The integrated ECU 31 includes a plurality of ECUs disposed at the center of the vehicle 11, such as the operation control ECU 51 and the battery ECU 52, and controls the overall operation of the vehicle 11.

  For example, the operation control ECU 51 is an ECU that realizes an ADAS (Advanced Driving Assistant System) function or an autonomous driving (Self driving) function, and an image recognition result from the front camera ECU 22, position information from the position information acquisition unit 23, communication unit The driving (traveling) of the vehicle 11 is controlled on the basis of various information such as surrounding vehicle information supplied from the control unit 25, the measurement results from the radar 27 and the rider 28, the detection result of the vehicle speed from the vehicle speed detection unit 41, and the like. That is, the driving control ECU 51 controls the driving of the vehicle 11 by controlling the steering mechanism 26, the braking device 34, the engine 35, the driving motor 37 and the like. In addition, the operation control ECU 51 controls the headlights 42 based on the presence or absence of the headlights of oncoming vehicles supplied as a result of image recognition from the front camera ECU 22 and performs beam irradiation by the headlights 42 such as switching between high beams and low beams. Control.

  The integrated ECU 31 may be provided with a dedicated ECU for each function such as the ADAS function, the autonomous driving function, and the beam control.

  The battery ECU 52 also controls the supply of power by the battery 38 and the like.

  The front view camera 32 is, for example, a camera arranged in the vicinity of the front grille, and captures an image in front of the vehicle 11 (hereinafter also referred to as a front image) including a region where the driver's blind spot is Supply.

  The front view camera ECU 33 performs image processing for improving the image quality such as white balance adjustment on the front image supplied from the front view camera 32, and the obtained front image is a cable different from the bus for CAN communication To the integrated ECU 31 via

  The braking device 34 operates in response to a brake operation by the driver or a control signal supplied from the integrated ECU 31 to stop or decelerate the vehicle 11. The engine 35 is a motive power source of the vehicle 11 and is driven according to the control signal supplied from the integrated ECU 31.

  The generator 36 is controlled by the integrated ECU 31 and generates electric power in response to the driving of the engine 35. The drive motor 37 is a motive power source of the vehicle 11, receives power supply from the generator 36 and the battery 38, and drives according to a control signal supplied from the integrated ECU 31. Note that whether the engine 35 is driven or the drive motor 37 is driven when the vehicle 11 is traveling can be appropriately switched by the integrated ECU 31.

  The battery 38 has, for example, a 12V battery or a 200V battery, and supplies power to each part of the vehicle 11 according to the control of the battery ECU 52.

  The rear view camera 39 is, for example, a camera disposed in the vicinity of the license plate of the tailgate, and captures an image (hereinafter also referred to as a rear image) behind the vehicle 11 including a region which becomes a blind spot of the driver. Supply to For example, the rear view camera 39 is activated when a shift lever (not shown) is moved to the reverse (R) position.

  The rear view camera ECU 40 performs image processing for improving the image quality such as white balance adjustment on the rear image supplied from the rear view camera 39, and the obtained rear image through a cable different from the bus for CAN communication. To the integrated ECU 31.

  The vehicle speed detection unit 41 is a sensor that detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle 11, and supplies the detection result of the vehicle speed to the integrated ECU 31. The vehicle speed detection unit 41 may calculate the acceleration or the derivative of the acceleration from the detection result of the vehicle speed. For example, the calculated acceleration is used to estimate the time until the collision of the vehicle 11 with the object.

  The headlight 42 operates in accordance with the control signal supplied from the integrated ECU 31 and illuminates the front of the vehicle 11 by outputting a beam.

  Further, in the vehicle 11, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of units including a front camera module 71, a communication unit 25, an operation control ECU 51, a steering mechanism 26, a braking device 34, an engine 35, a drive motor 37 and a headlight 42. Are mutually connected by a bus 72 for CAN communication. In FIG. 2, portions corresponding to the case in FIG. 1 are denoted with the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be appropriately omitted.

  In this example, the front camera module 71 includes a lens 81, an image sensor 82, a front camera ECU 22, and an MCU (Module Control Unit) 83.

  Further, the front sensing camera 21 is configured by the lens 81 and the image sensor 82. The image sensor 82 is formed of, for example, a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor or the like.

  In the front camera module 71, the light from the subject is condensed on the imaging surface of the image sensor 82 by the lens 81. The image sensor 82 picks up a sensing image by photoelectrically converting light incident from the lens 81 and supplies the sensed image to the front camera ECU 22.

  The front camera ECU 22 performs, for example, gain adjustment, white balance adjustment, HDR (High Dynamic Range) processing, and the like on the sensing image supplied from the image sensor 82, and then performs image recognition on the sensing image.

  In the image recognition, for example, recognition (detection) of a time until a collision with a white line or a curb, a pedestrian, a vehicle, a headlight, a brake light, a road sign, a preceding vehicle, etc. is performed. The recognition result of the image recognition is converted into a signal of a format for CAN communication by the MCU 83 and output to the bus 72.

  Further, the information supplied from the bus 72 is converted by the MCU 83 into a signal of a format defined for the front camera module 71, and is supplied to the front camera ECU 22.

  The operation control ECU 51 appropriately selects the steering mechanism 26, the braking device 34, and the engine based on the result of the image recognition output from the MCU 83 to the bus 72 and the information supplied from other units such as the radar 27 and the rider 28. And 35 control the driving motor 37, the headlight 42 and the like. As a result, operation control such as change of traveling direction, braking, acceleration, start, warning notification control, beam switching control, and the like are realized.

  Further, when the operation control ECU 51 realizes an autonomous operation function etc., for example, from the image recognition result at each time obtained by the front camera ECU 22, the operation control ECU 51 further recognizes the locus of the position of the target object The recognition result may be transmitted to an external server via the communication unit 25. In such a case, for example, in the server, learning such as a deep neural network is performed to generate a necessary dictionary or the like, which is transmitted to the vehicle 11. In the vehicle 11, the dictionary and the like obtained in this manner are received by the communication unit 25, and the received dictionary and the like are used for various predictions and the like in the operation control ECU 51.

  Note that among the control performed by the operation control ECU 51, the control that can be realized only from the result of the image recognition on the sensing image may be performed by the front camera ECU 22 instead of the operation control ECU 51.

  Specifically, for example, the front camera ECU 22 may control the headlight 42 based on the presence or absence of the headlight of the oncoming vehicle obtained by image recognition on the sensing image. In this case, for example, the front camera ECU 22 generates a control signal instructing switching between the low beam and the high beam, and supplies a control signal to the headlight 42 via the MCU 83 and the bus 72 to switch the beam by the headlight 42. Control.

  In addition, for example, based on the recognition result of white lines, curbs, pedestrians, etc. obtained by the front camera ECU 22 by image recognition with respect to the sensing image, warning notification of a collision to an object or warning of departure from a traveling lane (lane) A notification of alert may be controlled by generating a notification or the like and outputting the notification to the bus 72 via the MCU 83. In this case, the warning notification output from the front camera ECU 22 is supplied to, for example, the display unit 24 or a speaker (not shown). As a result, a warning can be displayed on the display unit 24 or a warning message can be output from the speaker.

  Furthermore, in the vehicle 11, for example, by displaying the composite image on the display unit 24 at the time of parking or the like, the around view monitor function is realized.

  That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the front image, the rear image, and the side image obtained by each part are supplied to the image combining ECU 101 provided in the integrated ECU 31 via a cable different from the bus for CAN communication. , A composite image is generated from those images. In FIG. 3, parts corresponding to the case in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  In FIG. 3, as the side view camera 29 shown in FIG. 1, a side view camera 29L disposed on the left side of the vehicle 11 and a side view camera 29R disposed on the right side of the vehicle 11 are provided. Further, as the side view camera ECU 30, a side view camera ECU 30L disposed on the left side of the vehicle 11 and a side view camera ECU 30R disposed on the right side of the vehicle 11 are provided.

  A front image obtained by the front view camera 32 is supplied from the front view camera ECU 33, and a rear image obtained by the rear view camera 39 is supplied from the rear view camera ECU 40 to the image synthesis ECU 101. Further, a side image (hereinafter, particularly referred to as a left side image) obtained by the side view camera 29L is supplied from the side view camera ECU 30L to the image synthesis ECU 101, and a side image obtained by the side view camera 29R ( Hereinafter, in particular, it is also called a right side image) is supplied from the side view camera ECU 30R.

  The image synthesis ECU 101 generates a synthesized image in which the front image, the rear image, the left side image, and the right side image are arranged in corresponding areas based on the supplied images, and displays the obtained synthesized image as a display unit. Supply to 24 and display. The driver can perform parking safely and easily by driving the vehicle 11 while checking the composite image displayed in this manner. The integrated ECU 31 may control driving of the vehicle 11 based on the composite image to perform parking.

  Further, instead of controlling a plurality of different functions by the operation control ECU 51, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, a control unit may be provided for each control content, that is, for each function. In FIG. 4, portions corresponding to the case in FIG. 2 are denoted with the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be appropriately omitted.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, the front camera module 71, the communication unit 25, the steering mechanism 26, the braking device 34, the engine 35, the drive motor 37, the headlight 42, the beam control unit 111, and the warning A plurality of units including a notification control unit 112, a steering control unit 113, a brake control unit 114, and an accelerator control unit 115 are connected.

  In this example, the control performed by the operation control ECU 51 in the example of FIG. 2 is shared by the beam control unit 111, the warning notification control unit 112, the steering control unit 113, the brake control unit 114, and the accelerator control unit 115. To be done.

  Specifically, for example, the beam control unit 111 performs switching control between the low beam and the high beam by controlling the headlights 42 based on the result of image recognition obtained by the front camera ECU 22 or the like. Further, the warning notification control unit 112 controls warning notifications such as various warning displays on the display unit 24 and output of warning messages by a speaker (not shown) based on the result of image recognition obtained by the front camera ECU 22 and the like. I do.

  The steering control unit 113 controls the traveling direction of the vehicle 11 by controlling the steering mechanism 26 based on the measurement results from the radar 27 and the lidar 28 as a result of the image recognition obtained by the front camera ECU 22. The brake control unit 114 controls the braking device 34 based on the measurement results from the radar 27 and the lidar 28 as a result of the image recognition obtained by the front camera ECU 22 to control the traveling stop and the deceleration of the vehicle 11. Do.

  Further, the accelerator control unit 115 starts the vehicle 11 by controlling the engine 35 and the drive motor 37 based on the measurement results from the radar 27 and the lidar 28 as a result of image recognition obtained by the front camera ECU 22. And control of acceleration.

<Functional Configuration Example of Vehicle>
Next, a functional configuration example for performing driving support for the vehicle 11 shown in FIG. 1 to avoid a collision with a surrounding vehicle will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of the vehicle 11 in such a case. In FIG. 5, parts corresponding to those in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  A vehicle 11 illustrated in FIG. 5 includes a communication unit 25, a vehicle occupant information acquisition unit 141, a control unit 142, and a display unit 24, and functions as a driving support device that performs driving support.

  The host vehicle occupant information acquiring unit 141 acquires host vehicle occupant information including information indicating the number of occupants in the vehicle 11, information indicating the occupant's riding position in the vehicle 11, and information indicating the attributes of each occupant. To the control unit 142. Here, the attribute of the occupant is, for example, whether the occupant is an adult or a child.

  For example, the host vehicle occupant information acquisition unit 141 has an indoor camera, detects a person from an indoor image obtained by imaging the interior of the vehicle 11, and obtains host vehicle occupant information from the detection result. In addition, the host vehicle occupant information acquiring unit 141 may detect the wearing condition of the seat belt in the room of the vehicle 11 and obtain the host vehicle occupant information from the detection result, and the number of passengers and the riding position by the passenger etc. The host vehicle occupant information may be obtained based on the operation input of

  The control unit 142 is implemented by, for example, the integrated ECU 31 illustrated in FIG. 1, in particular, the operation control ECU 51, and executes a driving support process performed by the vehicle 11. The control unit 142 includes an information acquisition unit 151, an area determination unit 152, a driving support processing unit 153, and a display control unit 154.

  The information acquisition unit 151 appropriately controls the communication unit 25 to receive nearby vehicle information by inter-vehicle communication with a nearby vehicle existing around the vehicle 11, and acquires the received nearby vehicle information from the communication unit 25. Do. The surrounding vehicle information may be acquired at regular time intervals, that is, periodically, or may be acquired irregularly.

  Area determination unit 152 determines a reception area, which is a range for receiving surrounding vehicle information by inter-vehicle communication, based on the host vehicle occupant information. In other words, the area determination unit 152 changes the reception area for receiving the surrounding vehicle information according to the number of occupants indicated by the host vehicle occupant information. Here, the reception area is an area of a predetermined range centered on the vehicle 11.

  The driving support processing unit 153 performs driving support processing, which is processing for controlling the traveling of the vehicle 11, based on the surrounding vehicle information acquired by the information acquiring unit 151.

  The driving support process is, for example, a process for avoiding a collision between the vehicle 11 and a surrounding vehicle. Specifically, for example, processing for controlling an inter-vehicle distance with a surrounding vehicle traveling in front of and behind the vehicle 11, processing for controlling lane change of the vehicle 11, and control of sudden braking of the vehicle 11, that is, sudden stopping or rapid deceleration. Processing is performed as driving support processing.

  The display control unit 154 controls the display unit 24 to display various images.

<Example of peripheral vehicle information>
By the way, when the vehicle 11 performs a driving assistance process, the surrounding vehicle information received from the surrounding vehicle by the inter-vehicle communication is used.

  The surrounding vehicle information includes one or more types of information regarding the surrounding vehicle. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the surrounding vehicle information includes information indicating the number of occupants of the surrounding vehicle, and information indicating the traveling state of the surrounding vehicle.

  That is, in the example shown in FIG. 6, as shown in the upper column in the figure, there are terminal ID, time information, position information, moving body type information, driving mode information, number of occupants information, traveling information, and driver in surrounding vehicle information. Attribute information is included.

  The terminal ID is a vehicle ID identifying a surrounding vehicle that is a transmission source of the surrounding vehicle information, and the time information is information indicating a transmission time of the surrounding vehicle information.

  The position information is information indicating the position such as the latitude and longitude of the surrounding vehicle at the time of transmission of the surrounding vehicle information, and the moving body type information is information indicating the type of the surrounding vehicle such as a general vehicle, a large vehicle, or a two-wheeled vehicle It is.

  The operation mode information is information indicating in which operation mode the surrounding vehicle is being driven, such as manual driving, assisted driving, autonomous driving, etc., and the occupant number information is information indicating the number of occupants in the surrounding vehicle. is there.

  Further, the traveling information is information indicating the traveling state of the surrounding vehicle, such as when the surrounding vehicle has suddenly braked, that is, a sudden stop or a rapid decelerating, is normally traveling, is stopping, is making a right turn. Note that the traveling information may include information such as the traveling speed of the surrounding vehicle.

  The driver attribute information is, for example, information indicating an attribute of a driver of a surrounding vehicle such as a healthy person, an elderly person, or another weak person.

  Here, as an example of peripheral vehicle information, an example in which a terminal ID, time information, position information, moving body type information, driving mode information, number of occupants information, traveling information, and driver attribute information are included will be described. The information may be anything as long as it relates to surrounding vehicles. For example, the surrounding vehicle information may be such that at least any one of the information shown in FIG. 6 is included.

  In the vehicle 11, the driving of the vehicle 11 is controlled based on such surrounding vehicle information.

  In particular, in the vehicle 11, by determining the reception area according to the number of occupants of the vehicle 11, peripheral vehicle information necessary for collision avoidance can be selectively obtained. Thereby, appropriate driving support can be realized.

  Specifically, for example, when the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is large, it takes time for the vehicle 11 to stop completely even if the vehicle 11 tries to brake, and the vehicle 11 proceeds in the traveling direction during that time as well. It will be.

  Therefore, for example, when the vehicle 11 suddenly stops itself in response to a sudden stop of the forward vehicle, in order to avoid a collision with the forward vehicle, the quick braking is performed earlier as the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 increases. There is a need.

  In such a case, for example, if it is possible to grasp not only the traveling state of the vehicle traveling one before the vehicle 11 but also the traveling state of the vehicle traveling two before the vehicle 11, the vehicle 11 is faster Appropriate driving support such as sudden braking and deceleration can be provided at the timing.

  Therefore, in the vehicle 11, a reception area corresponding to the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is determined, and peripheral vehicle information is received from peripheral vehicles in the reception area, so that more appropriate driving assistance can be performed. .

  For example, when the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is two as an example, a range of 4 meters ahead of the vehicle 11 is set as the reception area. Then, nearby vehicle information is received from the nearby vehicles present in the reception area by inter-vehicle communication, and driving support for collision avoidance is performed based on the received nearby vehicle information.

  On the other hand, for example, when the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is four, a range of 10 meters ahead of the vehicle 11 is taken as a reception area. Then, nearby vehicle information is received from the nearby vehicles present in the reception area by inter-vehicle communication, and driving support for collision avoidance is performed based on the received nearby vehicle information.

  At the time of driving support, for example, driving mode information of surrounding vehicles included in the surrounding vehicle information, traveling information, driver attribute information, number of occupants information, moving object type information, etc. are constantly monitored, and based on the monitoring results Driving is controlled.

  For example, it is assumed that a vehicle traveling one before the vehicle 11 is located 4 meters ahead of the vehicle 11 and a vehicle traveling two vehicles ahead of the vehicle 11 is 10 meters ahead of the vehicle 11. In addition, it is assumed that a vehicle traveling two before the vehicle 11 suddenly stops during autonomous driving, and accordingly, a vehicle traveling one before the vehicle 11 also suddenly stops.

  At this time, when the reception area is in the range of 4 meters in front of the vehicle 11, the vehicle 11 can not obtain the peripheral vehicle information of the vehicle traveling two ahead, so detecting the sudden stop of the vehicle Can not. Therefore, the vehicle 11 detects a sudden stop of the immediately preceding vehicle, and the vehicle 11 also rapidly stops.

  In this case, when the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is small, the vehicle 11 can be immediately stopped, so that the occurrence of a collision can be sufficiently avoided. However, when the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 is large, the vehicle 11 and its There is a possibility that one previous vehicle may collide.

  On the other hand, in the case where the reception area is in the range of 10 meters ahead of the vehicle 11, the vehicle 11 can obtain peripheral vehicle information of the vehicle traveling two ahead, and therefore, the sudden stop of the vehicle is detected. It is possible. Therefore, in this case, when the vehicle 11 detects a sudden stop of the vehicle two immediately before, that is, before the sudden stop of the vehicle one before, it slows down its own traveling speed, etc. It can stop without colliding with.

  In this manner, by making the reception area wider as the number of occupants of the vehicle 11 increases, it is possible to realize appropriate driving support for collision avoidance.

  In the following, in order to make the distinction between the vehicle 11 and the surrounding vehicles intelligible, the vehicle 11 which performs the driving support process will be appropriately described as the vehicle 11 or the vehicle.

<Description of operation control processing>
Next, as described above, the flow of processing in the case of performing driving support by changing the reception area according to the number of occupants of the host vehicle will be described. That is, the operation control process performed by the vehicle 11 will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 7.

  In step S11, the host vehicle occupant information acquisition unit 141 acquires host vehicle occupant information indicating the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, the riding position of the occupant, and the attributes of the occupant, and supplies the acquired information to the control unit 142. For example, the acquisition of the occupant information of the host vehicle is performed by detection of a person from an indoor image, detection of a wearing condition of a seat belt, operation input for the number of occupants, and the like.

  In step S12, the area determination unit 152 determines a reception area in which inter-vehicle communication is to be performed, based on the host vehicle occupant information acquired in step S11.

  For example, the area determination unit 152 determines the reception area so that the reception area becomes wider as the number of occupants indicated by the host vehicle occupant information increases. Specifically, for example, when the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11 is four, an area within a range of 10 meters before and after the host vehicle 11 is regarded as a reception area, and the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11 is two. In this case, an area in a range of 4 meters before and after the vehicle 11 is taken as a reception area.

  In step S13, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires surrounding vehicle information of a surrounding vehicle within the reception area determined in the process of step S12.

  That is, the information acquisition unit 151 controls the communication unit 25 to cause the communication unit 25 to perform inter-vehicle communication with a nearby vehicle in the reception area, and to receive nearby vehicle information from the nearby vehicle. Then, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires the received surrounding vehicle information from the communication unit 25.

  In step S14, the display control unit 154 controls the display unit 24 to display the reception area determined in the process of step S12. In other words, the control unit 142 controls the presentation of information related to the reception area.

  For example, when the display unit 24 is a transmissive display provided in a windshield (front glass) portion, the display control unit 154 causes the display unit 24 to display reception area information R11 indicating a reception area as shown in FIG.

  In the example illustrated in FIG. 8, a frame surrounding an area of a predetermined range of the same lane as the host vehicle 11 is displayed as the reception area information R11. By displaying the reception area information R11 in this manner, the driver can visually grasp the reception area.

  In addition to the reception area information R11, for example, a character message “forward 4 meters V 2 V receiving” or the like describing the reception area may be displayed on the display unit 24 or a voice message may be output to explain the reception area. Good. In addition, the display control unit 154 controls the display unit 24 so that peripheral vehicles present in the reception area are surrounded by a frame or the like, and display can be made so that peripheral vehicles in the reception area can be visually grasped. It is also good.

  Furthermore, the range (size) of the reception area is determined according to the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, but the lane next to the lane in which the host vehicle travels is also determined according to the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11. It may be determined whether to be included in the reception area or the like.

  For example, in the case where the lane next to the host vehicle 11 is also a reception area, when the display unit 24 is a transmissive display provided in a windshield, the display control unit 154 receives a reception area as shown in FIG. Information R21 is displayed on the display unit 24.

  In this example, a frame surrounding an area of a predetermined range including not only the same lane as the host vehicle 11 but also the lane adjacent to the lane is displayed as the reception area information R21.

  Furthermore, when displaying the reception area, instead of displaying a frame indicating the reception area, it is possible to identify the surrounding vehicles within the reception area, that is, from which surrounding vehicles are the surrounding vehicle information received? You may make it display so that it can identify.

  In such a case, for example, the display control unit 154 causes the display unit 24 to display a text message as shown in FIG.

  In the example shown in FIG. 10, the display unit 24 is also used as a display of a car navigation system, and the display unit 24 superimposes on a display screen for car navigation to display a message MS11 for explaining a reception area. ing.

  In particular, in this example, the characters "forward two cars V2V receiving" are displayed as the message MS11 in the part of the guidance route of the vehicle 11 in the display screen of the car navigation. By looking at this message MS11, the driver can instantly grasp that peripheral vehicle information is being received from two vehicles traveling ahead by inter-vehicle communication (V2V). That is, the driver can grasp that two vehicles ahead are in the reception area.

  Returning to the description of the flowchart of FIG. 7, in step S15, the driving support processing unit 153 performs the driving support processing based on the surrounding vehicle information acquired in the processing of step S13, and the driving control processing ends.

  Specifically, for example, the driving support processing unit 153 avoids the collision with the surrounding vehicle based on the moving body type information, the driving mode information, the number of occupants, the traveling information, the driver attribute information and the like included in the surrounding vehicle information. Perform driving support processing to

  As an example, it is assumed that a sudden stop (a sudden brake) of the preceding vehicle is detected, for example, by the traveling information of the preceding vehicle. In such a case, the driving support processing unit 153 generates a control signal instructing a sudden braking and supplies the control signal to the braking device 34, and causes the braking device 34 to perform the sudden braking, thereby performing the driving assistance process for collision avoidance. Perform the process to control the sudden braking as.

  In addition, as driving assistance processing for collision avoidance, processing for controlling an inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle 11 and a front vehicle or rear vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information, and processing for controlling a lane change of the host vehicle 11 Or the like may be performed. In such a case, the drive support processing unit 153 appropriately generates a control signal for controlling the drive and supplies it to the necessary block of the braking device 34, the engine 35, the drive motor 37, and the steering mechanism 26. By performing drive control of those blocks, drive support processing for collision avoidance is performed.

  As described above, the vehicle 11 determines the reception area according to the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, and receives the surrounding vehicle information from the peripheral vehicles in the determined reception area to perform the driving support process. In this way, appropriate driving support can be performed in consideration of the states of both the host vehicle 11 and the surrounding vehicles that have a large influence on the occurrence of a collision. In particular, by determining the reception area according to the number of occupants, it is possible to selectively acquire necessary information and perform appropriate driving support.

<Modified Example 1 of First Embodiment>
<Determination of reception area>
In the driving control process described with reference to FIG. 7, the case where the reception area is determined based on only the number of occupants of the own vehicle 11 has been described, but not only the number of occupants of the own vehicle 11 The reception area may be determined using the attributes of the occupant and the riding position.

  For example, the host vehicle occupant information obtained by the host vehicle occupant information acquisition unit 141 includes information indicating the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, the attributes of the occupants, and the riding position. Therefore, the area determination unit 152 determines not only how many passengers are on the vehicle 11 but also which seat is on which vehicle of the vehicle 11 from the vehicle occupant information. Can.

  Therefore, for example, the area determination unit 152 determines the reception area as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 based on the host vehicle occupant information, that is, based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, the riding position, and the attributes of the occupants. May be

  11 to 13, each square represents a seat of the vehicle 11, and in the figure, the seat drawn on the upper side is the seat on the front side of the vehicle 11, that is, the seat on the windshield side including the driver's seat. It has become. Hereinafter, in FIGS. 11 to 13, the upper left seat is also referred to as the front left seat, the upper right seat is also referred to as the front right seat, and the lower left seat is also referred to as the rear left seat. In the drawings, the seat on the lower right side is also referred to as the rear right seat.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the area determination unit 152 basically determines the size (size) of the reception area according to the following rules (1) to (4).

(1) As for the front and rear of the reception area, the larger the number of passengers in the seat on the direction side, the wider the direction of the reception area is. (2) the total number of occupants is large The width of the reception area in the front-rear direction is made wider. (3) As for the left and right sides of the reception area, the larger the number of passengers in the seat on that direction, The width is increased (4) The width of the reception area on the side of the passenger's riding position is determined according to the attribute of the passenger

  Specifically, for example, as shown by an arrow Q11 in FIG. 11, it is assumed that an adult is a passenger in the front left seat and the front right seat of the vehicle 11, respectively.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the width of the reception area in the forward direction to 4 meters, and the width of the reception area in the back direction, the right direction, and the left direction to 2 meters.

  On the other hand, for example, as shown by arrow Q12, it is assumed that a child is in the front left seat and an adult is in the front right seat.

  In such a case, the area determining unit 152 sets the front width of the reception area to 5 meters, the left width of the reception area to 4 meters, and the back width and the right width of the reception area. We assume 2 meters. In the example shown by the arrow Q12, compared with the example shown by the arrow Q11, the width of the left side on which the child rides in the reception area is made wider. Similarly, the size of the front, which is the side on which the child in the reception area is riding, is also made wider.

  In this manner, by increasing the size of the vulnerable side such as the children and the elderly in the reception area, it becomes possible for the vulnerable side to obtain more peripheral vehicle information, and the vulnerable are riding. The possibility of collision avoidance on the side can be improved.

  Also, for example, as shown by arrow Q13, it is assumed that a child is in the rear left seat and an adult is in the front right seat.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the width in the forward direction and the backward direction of the reception area to 4 meters, the width in the left direction of the reception area to 4 meters, and the width in the right direction of the reception area Let's say meters. In the example shown by the arrow Q13, compared with the example shown by the arrow Q11, the widths of the left side and the rear side on which the child is riding in the reception area are made wider.

  Further, for example, as shown by an arrow Q21 in FIG. 12, it is assumed that an adult gets on each of the front left seat, the front right seat, and the rear left seat of the vehicle 11.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the front width of the reception area to 8 meters, the back width of the reception area to 4 meters, and the left width of the reception area to 3 meters, The width of the reception area in the right direction is 2 meters.

  In this example, compared with the example shown by the arrow Q11 in FIG. 11, the width of the reception area in the forward direction and the backward direction becomes wider by the number of occupants being three. Further, since two occupants are in the seat on the left side of the vehicle 11, the width of the left side of the reception area is made wider.

  Further, as shown by arrow Q22, it is assumed that an adult gets on the front left seat and the front right seat of the vehicle 11, and a child gets on the rear left seat.

  In such a case, the area determining unit 152 sets the front width of the reception area to 8 meters, the back width of the reception area to 6 meters, and the left width of the reception area to 4 meters, The width of the reception area in the right direction is 2 meters.

  The example shown by arrow Q22 is an example where the occupant of the rear left seat in the example shown by arrow Q21 is changed from an adult to a child. Therefore, in this example, as compared with the example shown by the arrow Q21, the sizes of the rear side and the left side on which the child is riding in the reception area are made wider.

  Further, for example, as shown by an arrow Q31 in FIG. 13, it is assumed that an adult is in the front left seat, the front right seat, the rear left seat, and the rear right seat of the vehicle 11, respectively.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the front width of the reception area to 10 meters, the back width of the reception area to 7 meters, and the left and right widths of the reception area to 3 Let's say meters.

  In this example, as compared with the example shown by the arrow Q11 in FIG. 11, the width of the reception area in the forward direction and the backward direction becomes wider by the number of occupants being four. Further, since more passengers are also seated on the seats on the left and right sides of the vehicle 11, the left and right sides of the reception area are made wider.

  Further, as shown by arrow Q32, it is assumed that an adult gets on the front left seat and the front right seat of the vehicle 11 and a child gets on the rear left seat and the rear right seat, respectively.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the front area of the reception area to 10 meters, the rear area of the reception area to 8 meters, and the left area and the right area of the reception area. Let's say meters.

  The example shown by arrow Q32 is an example in which the occupants of the rear left seat and rear right seat in the example shown by arrow Q31 are changed from adults to children. Therefore, in this example, as compared with the example shown by the arrow Q31, the rear side and the left side and the right side on the side where the child is riding in the reception area are made wider.

  Further, as shown by an arrow Q33, it is assumed that an adult gets in each of the front left seat, the front right seat, and the rear left seat of the vehicle 11, and a child gets in the rear right seat.

  In such a case, the area determination unit 152 sets the front width of the reception area to 10 meters, the back width of the reception area to 8 meters, and the left width of the reception area to 3 meters, The width of the reception area in the right direction is 4 meters.

  The example shown by arrow Q33 is an example where the occupant of the rear right seat in the example shown by arrow Q31 is changed from an adult to a child. Therefore, in this example, as compared with the example shown by the arrow Q31, the sizes of the rear side and the right side on which the child is riding in the reception area are made wider.

  As described above, it is possible to determine a more appropriate reception area by determining the reception area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11, the attributes of the occupant, and the boarding position. At the time of determination of the reception area, at least the number of occupants may be used, and either one of the occupant attributes and the riding position may be used, or both of them may be used.

Second Embodiment
<Description of operation control processing>
Also, the case has been described above where the vehicle 11 determines the reception area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle and the like, and receives the peripheral vehicle information from the peripheral vehicles within the determined reception area. However, peripheral vehicle information is received from peripheral vehicles in a predetermined area, and peripheral vehicle information of peripheral vehicles in the area according to the number of occupants is selectively selected from among the peripheral vehicle information. And may be used for driving support.

  The operation control process performed by the vehicle 11 in such a case will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

  In step S41, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires surrounding vehicle information of a surrounding vehicle within a predetermined area.

  That is, the information acquisition unit 151 controls the communication unit 25 to cause the communication unit 25 to perform inter-vehicle communication with a nearby vehicle in a predetermined area, and to receive nearby vehicle information from the nearby vehicle. Then, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires the received surrounding vehicle information from the communication unit 25.

  Here, a predetermined area (hereinafter, also referred to as a fixed reception area) is, for example, an area of the largest area in which the vehicle 11 can perform inter-vehicle communication. In such a case, all peripheral vehicle information that can be acquired by the vehicle 11 is acquired for the time being.

  When the surrounding vehicle information is acquired in this manner, the host vehicle occupant information is acquired in step S42, but the processing in step S42 is the same as the processing in step S11 of FIG. Do.

  In step S43, the area determination unit 152 determines a use area using surrounding vehicle information based on the host vehicle occupant information acquired in the process of step S42.

  Here, the use area is an area which is an object for acquiring surrounding vehicle information used for the driving support process, and corresponds to the above-described reception area. In other words, the surrounding vehicle information received from the surrounding vehicle in the use area is used for the driving support process. However, the use area is an area within the fixed reception area, that is, a partial area of the fixed reception area.

  For example, as in the case of the reception area described above, the area determination unit 152 determines the use area according to the number of occupants so that the use area becomes wider as the number of occupants of the host vehicle indicated by the host vehicle occupant information increases. Do. In addition, the use area may be determined by the same method as the reception area determination method described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13, for example.

  In step S44, the driving support processing unit 153 selects surrounding vehicle information received from surrounding vehicles in the use area determined in step S43 from among the surrounding vehicle information acquired in step S41.

  In step S45, the display control unit 154 controls the display unit 24 to display the use area of the use area determined in the process of step S43. In this step S45, processing similar to the processing of step S14 of FIG. 7 is performed. That is, for example, the same display as the display shown in FIG. 8, FIG. 9, or FIG. 10 is performed.

  In step S46, the driving support processing unit 153 performs the driving support processing based on the peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicle in the use area selected in the processing of step S44, and the driving control processing ends. In step S46, the surrounding vehicle information selected in the process of step S44 is used, and the same process as step S15 of FIG. 7 is performed.

  As described above, the vehicle 11 receives surrounding vehicle information from surrounding vehicles in a fixed reception area determined in advance, and is determined according to the number of occupants of the own vehicle 11 among the surrounding vehicle information. The driving support processing is performed using only the surrounding vehicle information received from the surrounding vehicles in the used area. By receiving surrounding vehicle information from surrounding vehicles in the fixed reception area wider than the use area in this manner, it is possible to select only necessary surrounding vehicle information and perform appropriate driving support. Such a method is particularly useful, for example, when the present technology is applied to a bus or the like in which the number of passengers, the riding position, etc. frequently change.

  Further, in the above, an example in which the reception area and the use area are determined in accordance with the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11 has been described. However, it takes into consideration the number of occupants and driving modes of nearby vehicles traveling immediately before and after own vehicle 11, vehicle type, traveling speed, and the inter-vehicle distance with nearby vehicles traveling immediately before and after own vehicle 11 etc. The area or the use area may be determined.

  In such a case, in the second embodiment, for example, as much peripheral vehicle information as possible is acquired once, and then based on the acquired some peripheral vehicle information and own vehicle occupant information. If the use area is determined, the necessary surrounding vehicle information can be appropriately selected.

Third Embodiment
<Description of operation control processing>
Furthermore, in the second embodiment, the case where peripheral vehicle information is received for the fixed reception area is described for the time being. However, the surrounding vehicle information may be acquired for the receiving area, and the surrounding vehicle information may be additionally acquired as needed when the receiving area is changed.

  Hereinafter, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 15, the driving control process performed by the vehicle 11 in such a case will be described.

  In step S71, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires surrounding vehicle information of a surrounding vehicle within the reception area.

  In step S71, processing similar to the processing of step S13 in FIG. 7 is performed to acquire surrounding vehicle information, but the reception area here is, for example, a predetermined area. Also, the reception area used in step S71 may be, for example, the reception area defined immediately before the process of step S71 is performed, that is, the reception area defined when the surrounding vehicle information is finally acquired.

  When the process of step S71 is performed and the surrounding vehicle information is acquired, the process of step S72 is performed and the own vehicle occupant information is acquired, but the process of step S72 is the same as the process of step S11 of FIG. Since there is, the explanation is omitted.

  In step S73, the area determination unit 152 changes the reception area based on the host vehicle occupant information acquired in the process of step S72. That is, in step S73, the reception area is redetermined.

  Specifically, the area determination unit 152 may determine the reception area according to the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11 as in, for example, step S12 of FIG. The reception area may be determined by the method described.

  In step S74, the area determination unit 152 determines whether to widen the reception area.

  For example, when the reception area determined (changed) in step S73 is wider than the reception area used in step S71, it is determined in step S74 that the reception area is expanded. If the reception area determined in step S73 is an area included in the reception area used in step S71, it is determined in step S74 that the reception area is not expanded.

  If it is determined in step S74 that the reception area is not expanded, in step S75, the driving support processing unit 153 selects the surrounding vehicles in the reception area after the change in step S73 from among the surrounding vehicle information acquired in step S71. Select the nearby vehicle information received from.

  Therefore, for example, when the reception area redetermined in step S73 is the same as the reception area in step S71, all the surrounding vehicle information acquired in step S71 is selected.

  On the other hand, when the reception area redetermined in step S73 is a partial area of the reception area in step S71, that is, the reception area redetermined is more than the original reception area before redetermination. In the case of the narrow area, surrounding vehicle information received from surrounding vehicles in the re-determined receiving area is selected.

  When the surrounding vehicle information is selected in this manner, the process proceeds to step S77.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S74 that the reception area is to be expanded, that is, when the reception area after change is wider than the original reception area before change, the information acquisition unit 151 receives the change after step S76. The peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicles in the area is acquired.

  In step S76, processing similar to the processing in step S71 is performed, surrounding vehicle information is received from surrounding vehicles in the reception area determined in processing in step S73, and surrounding vehicle information is acquired by the information acquisition unit 151. Ru.

  In step S76, peripheral vehicle information may be newly obtained from the determined reception area, that is, all the surrounding vehicles in the reception area after the change, but it is in the reception area after the change. Peripheral vehicle information may be received only from peripheral vehicles that are not sources of peripheral vehicle information transmission in step S71 among peripheral vehicles. That is, in step S76, only the surrounding vehicle information not received in step S71 may be received.

  As described above, when the surrounding vehicle information is acquired for the changed reception area, the process proceeds to step S77.

  When the process of step S75 is performed or the process of step S76 is performed, the processes of steps S77 and S78 are performed thereafter, and the operation control process ends, but these processes are performed in step S14 of FIG. Since the process is the same as the process of step S15, the description thereof is omitted. However, in step S78, only the peripheral vehicle information received from the peripheral vehicle in the reception area determined in step S73, that is, the peripheral vehicle information selected in step S75, or the peripheral vehicle information acquired in step S76 is used. And driving support processing is performed.

  As described above, the vehicle 11 acquires surrounding vehicle information from surrounding vehicles in the reception area, and then changes the reception area based on the vehicle occupant information, and the reception area after the change is greater than the reception area before the change. If it is wide, peripheral vehicle information is acquired from the peripheral vehicles within the changed reception area. And the vehicle 11 performs a driving assistance process using the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle in the receiving area after a change. By doing this, peripheral vehicle information can be additionally acquired as needed, and appropriate driving support can be performed.

  The operation control process described with reference to FIG. 15 is also particularly useful when, for example, the number of occupants or the riding position changes as in the second embodiment. Also, in the operation control process described with reference to FIG. 15, not only the host vehicle occupant information but also the peripheral vehicle information received in step S71 may be used to determine the changed reception area. .

Fourth Embodiment
<Description of operation control processing>
By the way, when driving support processing is performed using the surrounding vehicle information, among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle according to the position of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the own vehicle 11, that is, the distance from the own vehicle 11 to the surrounding vehicle. The information required for driving support processing is different. In other words, the type of necessary information differs depending on the distance from the host vehicle 11 to the surrounding vehicles.

  For example, four occupants are on the vehicle 11, the forward vehicle A1 is traveling 6 meters ahead of the vehicle, the forward vehicle A2 is traveling 8 meters ahead of the vehicle, and the vehicle It is assumed that the vehicle ahead A3 is traveling 10 meters ahead.

  At this time, when driving assistance is performed using the surrounding vehicle information received from the preceding vehicles A1 to A3, more information of the preceding vehicles closer to the host vehicle 11 is required.

  That is, for example, for the preceding vehicle A3 traveling 10 meters ahead, if there is traveling information indicating the traveling state such as whether the preceding vehicle A3 is traveling at a normal speed or suddenly stopped as surrounding vehicle information, collision avoidance It is sufficient to provide appropriate driving support for the

  In addition, for the preceding vehicle A2 traveling on the side of the host vehicle 11 rather than the preceding vehicle A3, for example, if there is traveling information and driver attribute information among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information, appropriate driving support for collision avoidance It is enough to do.

  On the other hand, for the preceding vehicle A1 traveling immediately in front of the host vehicle 11, in order to realize appropriate driving support for collision avoidance, driving mode information and the number of occupants as well as traveling information and driver attribute information And more information is needed.

  As described above, in order to perform appropriate driving support for collision avoidance, more types of information are required as the vehicles near the host vehicle 11 are closer. This is because the closer to the host vehicle 11, the greater the impact on the occurrence of a collision.

  Therefore, when acquiring surrounding vehicle information, the type of information acquired for each distance from the own vehicle 11 may be determined based on the own vehicle occupant information of the own vehicle 11.

  In such a case, in the vehicle 11, for example, a driving control process shown in FIG. 16 is performed. That is, the operation control process by the vehicle 11 will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In addition, since the process of step S101 and step S102 is the same as the process of step S11 of FIG. 7, and step S12, the description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In step S103, the area determination unit 152 determines the type of information to be acquired as surrounding vehicle information for each distance from the host vehicle 11 based on the host vehicle occupant information. That is, the information used for the driving assistance process among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information is determined (selected) for each distance from the host vehicle 11 to the surrounding vehicle.

  Specifically, for example, in the case where the number of occupants of the host vehicle 11 is four, the area determination unit 152 detects moving object type information, driving mode information, occupants in a range where the distance from the host vehicle 11 is up to 6 meters. The number information, the travel information, and the driver attribute information are assumed to be information of a type to be acquired as surrounding vehicle information. In addition, when the distance from the host vehicle 11 is in the range of 6 meters to 8 meters, the area determination unit 152 sets travel information and driver attribute information as information of a type for acquiring surrounding vehicle information, and the distance from the host vehicle 11 is 8 meters In the range from 10 meters to 10 meters, the traveling information is used as the type information to be acquired as the surrounding vehicle information.

  Here, although an example of determining the type of information to be acquired for each distance from the host vehicle 11 will be described, for example, as lane information for each lane for each lane from the host vehicle 11 based on the host vehicle occupant information. The type of information to be acquired may be determined. Also, for example, the type of information acquired as the surrounding vehicle information may be determined for each lane in which the surrounding vehicle travels.

  For example, for the same lane as the lane in which the host vehicle 11 travels, the peripheral vehicles traveling in the lane greatly influence the occurrence of a collision of the host vehicle 11. Make it possible to acquire surrounding vehicle information. On the other hand, as for the lane next to the lane where the vehicle 11 travels, peripheral vehicles not in the vicinity of the vehicle 11 do not greatly affect the occurrence of a collision of the vehicle 11, so only the vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle 11 Let surrounding vehicle information be acquired from. At this time, since the peripheral vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane does not need much information, for example, only the traveling information may be acquired.

  Furthermore, although the example which determines a receiving area by step S102 and determines the classification of the information acquired for every distance from the own vehicle 11 by step S103 was demonstrated here, a receiving area is a fixed area | region fixed beforehand. It may be an area.

  In addition, if the type of information to be acquired is determined for each distance from the host vehicle 11 in step S103, the reception area is substantially determined by the determination result, so that the process of step S102 is not particularly performed. Good. In such a case, the reception area will be determined substantially in step S103.

  As described above, when the reception area and the type of information to be acquired for each distance in the reception area are determined, the information acquisition unit 151 calculates surrounding vehicle information based on the determination result by the area determination unit 152. get.

  That is, in step S104, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires, as surrounding vehicle information, information of the type determined in step S103 of the surrounding vehicle in the reception area determined in the process of step S102.

  Specifically, the information acquisition unit 151 controls the communication unit 25 to cause the communication unit 25 to perform inter-vehicle communication with a nearby vehicle in the reception area, and information of the type determined in step S103 from the nearby vehicle. Receive surrounding vehicle information consisting of Then, the information acquisition unit 151 acquires the received surrounding vehicle information from the communication unit 25.

  After the peripheral vehicle information is acquired, the processes of steps S105 and S106 are performed to end the operation control process, but these processes are similar to the processes of steps S14 and S15 of FIG. The explanation is omitted.

  As described above, the vehicle 11 determines the type of information to be acquired for each distance from the host vehicle 11, and acquires surrounding vehicle information according to the determination to perform driving support processing. By doing this, only necessary information can be acquired, and appropriate driving support can be provided.

Fifth Embodiment
<Description of operation control processing>
Furthermore, in the vehicle 11, processing may be performed by combining the above-described second embodiment and the fourth embodiment.

  The operation control process performed by the vehicle 11 in such a case will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG. In addition, since the process of step S131 to step S133 is the same as the process of step S41 to step S43 of FIG. 14, the description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In step S134, the area determination unit 152 determines the type of information to be used in the surrounding vehicle information for each distance from the own vehicle 11 based on the own vehicle occupant information.

  In step S134, the type of information used for the driving support processing is determined for each distance from the host vehicle 11, as in step S103 in FIG. In step S134, not only the distance from the host vehicle 11 but also the lanes of surrounding vehicles may be taken into consideration to determine the type of information to be used. Further, even in step S134, as in the case of step S103 in FIG. 16, if the type of information to be used is determined for each distance, the use area is substantially determined, and therefore the process of step S133 may not necessarily be performed. .

  In step S135, the driving support processing unit 153 determines the type determined in step S134 of the peripheral vehicle information received from the peripheral vehicle in the use area determined in step S133 among the peripheral vehicle information acquired in step S131. Select the information of.

  After the process of step S135 is performed, the processes of steps S136 and S137 are performed to end the operation control process, but these processes are similar to the processes of steps S45 and S46 of FIG. The explanation is omitted. However, in step S137, the driving support process is performed using the information selected in the process of step S135.

  As described above, the vehicle 11 receives surrounding vehicle information from surrounding vehicles in a predetermined fixed reception area, and from among the surrounding vehicle information, the number of occupants of the own vehicle 11 and the own vehicle 11 Necessary information is selected according to the distance of and driving support processing is performed. In this way, appropriate driving support can be provided using only the necessary information.

  Although the example in which the second embodiment and the fourth embodiment are combined has been described here, the third embodiment and the fourth embodiment may be combined. In such a case, for each distance from the host vehicle 11 and each lane, information of a type additionally required is further acquired.

<Configuration example of computer>
By the way, the series of processes described above can be executed by hardware or software. When the series of processes are performed by software, a program that configures the software is installed on a computer. Here, the computer includes, for example, a general-purpose personal computer that can execute various functions by installing a computer incorporated in dedicated hardware and various programs.

  FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a computer that executes the series of processes described above according to a program.

  In the computer, a central processing unit (CPU) 501, a read only memory (ROM) 502, and a random access memory (RAM) 503 are mutually connected by a bus 504.

  Further, an input / output interface 505 is connected to the bus 504. An input unit 506, an output unit 507, a recording unit 508, a communication unit 509, and a drive 510 are connected to the input / output interface 505.

  The input unit 506 includes an input switch, a button, a microphone, an imaging device, and the like. The output unit 507 includes a display, a speaker, and the like. The recording unit 508 includes a hard disk, a non-volatile memory, and the like. The communication unit 509 is formed of a network interface or the like. The drive 510 drives a removable recording medium 511 such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a semiconductor memory.

  In the computer configured as described above, the CPU 501 loads, for example, the program recorded in the recording unit 508 into the RAM 503 via the input / output interface 505 and the bus 504, and executes the above-described series. Processing is performed.

  The program executed by the computer (CPU 501) can be provided by being recorded on, for example, a removable recording medium 511 as a package medium or the like. Also, the program can be provided via a wired or wireless transmission medium such as a local area network, the Internet, or digital satellite broadcasting.

  In the computer, the program can be installed in the recording unit 508 via the input / output interface 505 by attaching the removable recording medium 511 to the drive 510. Also, the program can be received by the communication unit 509 via a wired or wireless transmission medium and installed in the recording unit 508. In addition, the program can be installed in advance in the ROM 502 or the recording unit 508.

  Note that the program executed by the computer may be a program that performs processing in chronological order according to the order described in this specification, in parallel, or when necessary, such as when a call is made. It may be a program to be processed.

  Further, the embodiments of the present technology are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present technology.

  For example, the present technology can have a cloud computing configuration in which one function is shared and processed by a plurality of devices via a network.

  Further, each step described in the above-described flowchart can be executed by one device or in a shared manner by a plurality of devices.

  Furthermore, in the case where a plurality of processes are included in one step, the plurality of processes included in one step can be executed by being shared by a plurality of devices in addition to being executed by one device.

  Furthermore, the present technology can also be configured as follows.

(1)
A control unit that performs a driving support process of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.
(2)
The driving support device according to (1), wherein the region is set to be wider as the number of occupants of the host vehicle is larger.
(3)
The driving support device according to (1) or (2), wherein the driving support processing is processing for avoiding a collision between the host vehicle and the surrounding vehicle.
(4)
The surrounding vehicle information includes information indicating the traveling state of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating the number of occupants of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating the type of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating a driving mode of the surrounding vehicle, and the surrounding vehicle The driving assistance apparatus according to any one of (1) to (3), which is information including at least one of information indicating an attribute of a driver.
(5)
The driving support apparatus according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the control unit determines the area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle.
(6)
The driving support apparatus according to (5), wherein the control unit determines the region based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle and the riding position of the occupant in the host vehicle or the attribute of the occupant.
(7)
The control unit is configured to, among the peripheral vehicle information received from the peripheral vehicle in a predetermined area wider than the area, the peripheral vehicle in the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle The driving assistance apparatus according to (5) or (6), which performs the driving assistance processing based on the surrounding vehicle information.
(8)
If the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle is wider than the predetermined area after the control unit acquires the peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicle within the predetermined area. The driving assistance apparatus according to (5) or (6), further acquiring the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle in the determined area.
(9)
Among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle, the control unit, for each distance to the surrounding vehicle or for each lane in which the surrounding vehicle travels, based on the number of occupants of the own vehicle The driving support apparatus according to any one of (1) to (8), which selects a type of information used for the driving support process.
(10)
The driving support apparatus according to any one of (1) to (9), wherein the control unit further controls presentation of information on the area.
(11)
A driving support method including the step of performing driving support processing of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.
(12)
A program that causes a computer to execute processing including the step of performing driving support processing of the host vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on peripheral vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the host vehicle.
(13)
A mobile unit comprising: a control unit that performs driving support processing of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.

  11 vehicle, 25 communication unit, 34 braking system, 35 engine, 37 drive motor, 51 operation control ECU, 141 own vehicle occupant information acquisition unit, 151 information acquisition unit, 152 area determination unit, 153 driving support processing unit, 154 display Control unit

Claims (13)

A control unit that performs a driving support process of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the region is set to be wider as the number of occupants of the host vehicle is larger. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the driving support processing is processing for avoiding a collision between the own vehicle and the surrounding vehicle. The surrounding vehicle information includes information indicating the traveling state of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating the number of occupants of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating the type of the surrounding vehicle, information indicating a driving mode of the surrounding vehicle, and the surrounding vehicle The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the driving support device is information including at least one of information indicating an attribute of a driver. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines the area based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle. The driving support device according to claim 5, wherein the control unit determines the region based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle and the riding position of the occupant in the host vehicle or the attribute of the occupant. The control unit is configured to, among the peripheral vehicle information received from the peripheral vehicle in a predetermined area wider than the area, the peripheral vehicle in the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the driving assistance processing is performed based on the surrounding vehicle information. If the area determined based on the number of occupants of the host vehicle is wider than the predetermined area after the control unit acquires the peripheral vehicle information of the peripheral vehicle within the predetermined area. The driving support device according to claim 5, further acquiring the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle in the determined area. Among the information included in the surrounding vehicle information of the surrounding vehicle, the control unit, for each distance to the surrounding vehicle or for each lane in which the surrounding vehicle travels, based on the number of occupants of the own vehicle The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein a type of information used for the driving support processing is selected. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit further controls presentation of information on the area. A driving support method including the step of performing driving support processing of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle. A program that causes a computer to execute processing including the step of performing driving support processing of the host vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on peripheral vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the host vehicle. A mobile unit comprising: a control unit that performs driving support processing of the own vehicle based on surrounding vehicle information on surrounding vehicles present in a region corresponding to the number of occupants of the own vehicle.

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